Lawyer: Ghislaine Maxwell will clear Trump, Clinton for clemency

by · UPI

Feb. 9 (UPI) -- Ghislaine Maxwell, convicted co-conspirator of Jeffrey Epstein, said through her lawyer that she would clear President Donald Trump and former President Bill Clinton of any wrongdoing if she is granted clemency.

Maxwell's attorney David Oscar Markus said in a statement to the Committee that he later released on X: "If this Committee and the American public truly want to hear the unfiltered truth about what happened, there is a straightforward path. Ms. Maxwell is prepared to speak fully and honestly if granted clemency by President Trump."

Trump and Clinton, who appear throughout the files released by the Justice Department, have denied any wrongdoing.

"Only she can provide the complete account. Some may not like what they hear, but the truth matters. For example, both President Trump and President Clinton are innocent of any wrongdoing. Ms. Maxwell alone can explain why, and the public is entitled to that explanation," Markus said.

Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., announced Monday afternoon that Maxwell had stayed silent during a deposition by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

"After months of defying our subpoena, Ghislaine Maxwell finally appeared before the oversight committee and said nothing," Garcia said. "She answered no questions and provided no information about the men who raped and trafficked women and girls. Who is she protecting? And we need to know why she's been given special treatment at a low-security prison by the Trump administration. We are going to end this White House cover-up."

Before the deposition, Epstein survivors told the House Oversight committee to be wary of Maxwell's testimony in a letter sent to the Committee, CNN reported.

"We urge the Committee to approach Ms. Maxwell's testimony with the utmost skepticism, to rigorously scrutinize any claims she makes, and to ensure that this process does not become another vehicle through which survivors are harmed or silenced," the letter, signed by a group of survivors, said. "Truth, accountability, and transparency must be the priority -- not the rehabilitation of a convicted trafficker's narrative."

"Ms. Maxwell was not a peripheral figure," the letter continued. "She was a central and indispensable architect of Jeffrey Epstein's sex trafficking enterprise. Despite this, she has refused to meaningfully cooperate with law enforcement or provide credible, complete information about the scope of the trafficking network."

House Oversight Chair James Comer called Maxwell's decision to plead the Fifth "very disappointing" and said lawmakers "had many questions to ask about the crime she and Epstein committed, as well as questions about potential co-conspiracy."

Some Democrats on the Committee said Maxwell was trying to buy her clemency with her refusal to testify.

Markus disputes this claim in his statement.

"She must remain silent because Ms. Maxwell has a habeas petition currently pending that demonstrates that her conviction rests on a fundamentally unfair trial," the statement said.

"For example, jurors lied during voir dire [jury selection] to secure seats on the jury, and the government promised immunity and then broke that promise. Newly disclosed documents now demonstrate these facts conclusively," the statement said.

Rep. Melanie Stansbury, D-N.M., said, "We will not allow this silence to stand."

Rep. Ro Khanna, a member of the Committee, sent a letter to Oversight Committee Chair James Comer, R-Ky., on Sunday asking about Maxwell's intention to plead the Fifth and listed the questions he intends to ask.

"This position appears inconsistent with Ms. Maxwell's prior conduct, as she did not invoke the Fifth Amendment when she previously met with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche to discuss substantially similar subject matter," Khanna wrote.

He listed seven questions that he intended to ask and requested that Comer enter his letter into the official record.

Khanna said Maxwell's habeas corpus petition on Dec. 17 said that there were "four named co-conspirators" and 25 men who entered into secret settlements who were not indicted as part of the investigation. He asked who were the men "who sexually abused minors at Epstein's island, his New Mexico ranch, or his New York residence, and why do you believe they were not indicted?"

He also asked did she ever "arrange, facilitate, or provide access to underage girls to President [Donald] Trump?"

Khanna wants to know if Trump or anyone else has promised to or is working to get her a pardon in exchange for her silence, are there any foreign governments that Epstein worked with -- specifically Russia and Israel -- and if Epstein maintained a list of clients.

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Attorney General Pam Bondi speaks during a press conference at the Department of Justice Headquarters on Friday. Justice Department officials have announced that the FBI has arrested Zubayr al-Bakoush, a suspect in the 2012 attack on the U.S. Embassy in Benghazi, Libya, that killed four Americans. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo

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